Editing Pershing Rifles (section)

==Membership and competitions==

[[File:BeforePassInReviewNATCON.jpg|thumb|right|500px|Pershing Riflemen in formation before the John J. Pershing Memorial Drill Competition during NATCON 2014 held in [[Richmond, Virginia]].]] Active membership is restricted to college students enrolled at an institution that hosts a Pershing Rifles company. Members may be either male or female and while a majority have affiliation with the military (especially [[Reserve Officers' Training Corps|ROTC]]), it is not a prerequisite for membership.
[[File:Clemson Pershing Rifles.jpg|thumb|Army ROTC cadet Richard Moore of Clemson University's Pershing Rifles Company C-4 inspects a cadet as part of the changing of the guard ceremony at The Scroll of Honor. Members of the Pershing Rifles provide a 24-hour honor guard to pay respect to the men and women whose names are on the Scroll of Honor. (National Guard photo by Spc. Brian R. Calhoun)]]
Each company has latitude in selecting its uniform and weapons. They vary from company T-shirts and [[Battle dress uniform|BDU]] or [[Army combat uniform|ACU]] pants to more formal uniforms, like the Army's [[United States Army#Uniforms|service uniforms]], or "Class A's". Many companies wear berets, in a wide variety of colors. The only real consistencies within companies are the wear of a Pershing Rifles rank shield and, on dress uniforms, a shoulder cord and the Pershing Rifles Service Ribbon, which is blue with six vertical white lines, symbolic of the six core values held by a Pershing Rifleman.

Former Company W-4 at [[The College of William & Mary]] wore uniforms based on those of the [[Scots Guards]] as recognition of their role as the [[Queens' Guard]], the college's ceremonial guard unit, twice mustered upon visits by [[Queen Elizabeth II]] to the college.

Most Pershing Rifles companies use older [[battle rifle]]s (especially the [[M1903 Springfield rifle|M1903 Springfield]] or [[M1 Garand rifle|M1 Garand]]) in performing routines. At the annual National Society of Pershing Rifles National Convention and Drill Competition (NATCON), active companies compete in various categories of regulation drill (like proficiency at performing a color guard) and [[exhibition drill]] (also known as trick drill, involving spinning or throwing the rifles).

Other Pershing Rifles companies, such as Company A-12<ref>{{cite web|url=https://a12pershingrifles.com|title=A-12 Pershing Rifles|website=a12pershingrifles.com|access-date=20 May 2018}}</ref> ([[Northeastern University]]), Company B-9<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.colorado.edu/StudentGroups/PershingRifles|title=Pershing Rifles B-9|website=www.colorado.edu|access-date=28 March 2018}}</ref> ([[University of Colorado at Boulder]]), Company C-9 ([[Colorado School of Mines]]), Company B-12 ([[Boston University]]) and Company C-12(ABN)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://web.mit.edu/c12abn/www/history_c12.shtml|title=C-12 homepage|access-date=28 March 2018}}</ref> ([[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]]), focus on tactical training. Company C-4([[Clemson University]]) practices and focuses on regulation D&C, and a mastery of exhibition drill.